Work today was totally, completely, 100% frustrating.  Bummersauce.

I’m not going to lie, sometimes I have a day like this & come home to comfort myself with a pan of brownies, pajamas at 4 PM, no exercise, & an evening of general self-loathing.  But I know from past experience that this only makes it worse, so I powered through & did some good things for me!  YAY!

After putting on some play clothes, I sipped on a lovely cup of peppermint tea from my Valentine’s mug.  I am a total sucker for anything holiday themed.  I love decorating for any & every holiday.  Makes things so much cheerier, dontcha think??

Isn't she precious???

When in doubt, I also recommend taking jumping photos of yourself with your camera’s self timer.  I swear, it totally cheered me up!

Wheeeeeee!!!

On today’s workout agenda were a couple shows from Exercise TV! I LOVE having these workouts at my fingertips.  There are SO many of them, so I never get bored, & it’s a heck of a lot cheaper than going to a gym.

First up, Jackie Warner’s Total Body Power Circuit.  Girl is legit!  Sometimes I get a little scared that she’s going to reach through the TV & whip my butt if I don’t keep up!  Seriously, though, I love this workout because it really works my muscles, but I never get to a point where I feel like quitting.  Plus, I get that “good hurt” the next day. 

source

Next, a little yoga with Bethenny.  Now I must profess my love for Bethenny Frankel.  She is so wonderfully blunt; I adore her.  And not to get all schmoopy on you, but I find her really inspiring.  As a 31 year old single woman, I feel a little jaded in the love/marriage/career department.  When I look at how far Bethenny has come in her 30s, it gives me hope for myself.  I’m nowhere near as driven as she is, but she really makes me believe I can give it a go!  Her book, A Place of Yes, is coming out soon, & I honestly can’t wait!!!

Right in the comfort of my own living room!

Anywho, onto the calming wonderfullness (yes, I just made up that word) that is yoga.  I rarely take the time to stretch after working out, so I love that this totally relaxes my muscles while also working them.

My workouts were really good today.  Definitely glad I made myself do them!  I was super hungry when I got done, though, so I whipped up a Roasted Veggie Salad inspired my Kristin, one of my favorite bloggers!  My version went like this:

Roasted Veggie Salad

Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray.  Peel & chop a small butternut squash & put it on the pan.  Spray the squash with more cooking spray & sprinkle with 1/2 T. brown sugar & some ground cinnamon.  Toss it all together until it’s coated.

Then, chop up a small eggplant.  Spray with cooking spray & sprinkle with garlic salt & pepper.  Throw it on the pan next to the squash.  Pop the veggies into the oven at 425* for about 30 minutes.

While the veggies roast, slice up half an onion & caramelize it over medium low heat.  While the onions are doing their thing, add about 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar to a small saucepan & reduce it down until it becomes syrupy deliciousness.  I would tell you how to do this, but I’m not all that great at it.  Google it.  Practice.  You’ll find your way.  And when I master it, I’ll post about it then.

When there are about 10 minutes left for the veggies, throw a handful of grape tomatoes onto the pan.  Put some romaine lettuce into a bowl & toss it with Garlic Gold Lemon Vinaigrette.  If you haven’t tried this stuff, it is life changing.  Order it.  I promise you won’t be sorry.

The veggies should be about done roasting by now, so take ‘em out.  Throw about half the squash & eggplant & all the tomatoes on top of the romaine.  Top the whole thing with your onions & balsamic syrup.

OMG!  The balsamic & onions totally make this!!!  I die!

Paired with my beer of choice, cuz it was a rough day & it couldn’t hurt, right???

Totally hit the spot!

Ha!  Take that, Bad Day!!!  Off to enjoy some How I Met Your Mother . . . I’ve got my eye on something sweet in the kitchen, too!

A Q for you . . .

How do you undo a bad day?